SUMMARY

This article includes information on several applications that require the SETVER.EXE program in order to run successfully under MS-DOS 5.0. This article contains the following sections:

• What Is SETVER.EXE?
• Applications That Require SETVER.EXE
• How to Use SETVER.EXE

What Is SETVER.EXE?

When you start an application, often the first thing it does during its initialization phase is check the version number of MS-DOS. This is done to ensure that the program is compatible with the current version of the operating system. Since MS-DOS 5.0 is compatible with earlier versions of MS-DOS, most programs should run well, regardless of what version they expect.

SETVER.EXE was designed to enable version-checking applications to run successfully under MS-DOS 5.0. SETVER.EXE does only one thing; it reports the necessary version number so that any application can start and be used normally.

In most situations, running a program that was designed for an earlier version of MS-DOS is safe. However, in some cases, a program that makes certain assumptions based on the MS-DOS version number may make mistakes. Data loss and file corruption can occur. This is why a warning message is displayed whenever you add a program to the SETVER.EXE version table. If you are working with important or valuable data, you may want to contact your application vendor before using SETVER.EXE.

Applications That Require SETVER.EXE

The following applications require versions of MS-DOS earlier than 5.0. Their filenames and required versions (to be added to the SETVER.EXE version table) are listed in their titles, followed by any other applicable information:

ACCESS.EXE 4.0

ACCESS.EXE, the EasyNetwork redirector, appears to run successfully until a remote user attempts to access a network drive. The remote user may be able to log on to the drive, but any further use of it results in a network crash. This applies to the following versions of EasyNetwork:

FOCUS.EXE 4.01

Information Builders Incorporated FOCUS.EXE may display the following error message if it is not added to the SETVER.EXE version table:

GEOS.EXE 4.0

(America Online)

Lotus 1-2-3 3.30

(applies to version 2.01 of Lotus 1-2-3)

MSCDEX.EXE 4.01

MSCDEX.EXE version 2.2 requires the use of SETVER.EXE. MSCDEX.EXE should already be in your SETVER.EXE table, unless you have IBM PC-DOS 5.0. If you have Microsoft MS-DOS 5.0, make sure you are loading SETVER.EXE in the CONFIG.SYS file. If you have IBM PC-DOS, make sure SETVER.EXE is in the CONFIG.SYS file and add MSCDEX.EXE to the SETVER.EXE version table.

PCBFAST.EXE 4.01

(applies to version 1.25 of Intelligent Devices Corporation [IDC] PowerCache)

PLAYER.EXE 4.0

(Chinon CD-ROM Music Player)

PRODIGY.EXE 4.01

(Prodigy Services)

TURBO.EXE 3.30

NEC has confirmed that TURBO.EXE, included with NEC-DOS version 3.3, can be used with MS-DOS 5.0. The TURBO command is used to toggle between clock speeds on NEC PowerMate 286 and NEC PowerMate 286 Plus machines.

Note: MS-DOS 5.0 Setup copies TURBO.EXE to the OLD_DOS.1 subdirectory. TURBO.EXE should be copied to the upgraded MS-DOS subdirectory to avoid the possibility of its deletion if the OLD_DOS.1 subdirectory is removed.

10NET.EXE 4.0

(DCA 10Net Network)

10NET16.EXE 4.01

If 10NET16.EXE (for DCA 10Net networks) detects an unexpected MS-DOS version, the following error message may be displayed:

How to Use SETVER.EXE

SETVER.EXE allows you to change the version of MS-DOS reported to an application by adding the application name and the desired version of MS-DOS to the SETVER.EXE table.

To modify the version table, do the following:

• At any MS-DOS prompt, type the following:

setver <program name> <version>

For example: If you want MS-DOS to report version 4.01 to EXAMPLE.EXE, type the following:

setver example.exe 4.01


• Verify that the command was added to the version table by typing setver.
• Reboot (press CTRL+ALT+DEL) so that the change to the version table takes effect.

NOTE: Before you can use the SETVER command, the SETVER.EXE version table must be loaded by a DEVICE command in your CONFIG.SYS file. By default, MS- DOS 5.0 Setup modifies your CONFIG.SYS file to ensure that the version table is loaded into memory each time you start your computer. If you have problems following the previous steps, check that SETVER.EXE is being loaded in your CONFIG.SYS file.